FARMERS’ COLUMN.

Western Star, Issue 2087, 22 February 1896, Page 3

FARMERS’ COLUMN.

Mr W Farrar, of Qucanbeyan, New South Wales, writes to the Australasian : —“ Some of your readers may be growing the wheat ‘ Blount’s Lambrigg.’ I have a word of encouragement to give them to continue this variety. A great ‘ set ’ has been made against this wheat on account of its supposed inferiority for milling, and not least of all by some of the scientists attached to the Government agricultural departments, who ought to have been more cautious. The opinions and experiences of those who had handled this wheat differed so much tliat 1 determined to have it submitted to a systematic examination, and to set the matter at rest I got Mr Guthrie, the chemist of our agricultural department, to mill it by a soft roller mill for testing the milling qualities and peculiarities of wheat, which our agricultural department possesses. Mr Guthrie has examined 98 other wheats by the same mill and so has been able to make his examination of Blount’s Lambrigg, which stands absolutely and distinctly the first in the smallness of the proportions of the bran it yields ; in weight per measured bushel it stands third ; the color of the flour was good and contained in a higher degree than does the flour made from our soft

wheats the yellow gilt-edgod tint which American millers like and regard as indicative of strength. 1 hope that I shall have the happiness of being able to hand over, after the harvest of 1896, to the Governments of the different colonies, samples of what ought to bo to us a very valuable wheat.

THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT AND AGRICULTURE.

Mr Long, the President of the Board of Agriculture, in addressing a meeting at Sudbury (Suffolk) not long i since, frankly admitted that the condition of the agricultural industry was at this moment more grave than at any other period of the country’s history. The Government, on their part were aware of this, and were anxiously considering what it might be - possible for them to ask Parliament to do in order to give agriculture, at all events a fairer field than it had at the present time, and if they failed, it certainly would not be for the want of will, but for the want of power. He made out a strong case for the readjustment of taxation, declaimed that he was getting nervous about bimetallism, a subject which he had neither advocated nor opposed, and he felt that though the country was agreed upon either it or Protection to-morrow the effects could not be felt for a considerable time. The Government, while not pretending to believe in heroic measures, held that a great deal could be done by giving attention to local taxaction, by giving facilities for conveying to market what was grown, by opening up new markets, and by a wise scheme for some form of light railways. THINGS IN ENGLAND. As an indication of the condition of the farming industry in Britain, we quote the following remarks, made by “ Barrister-at-law ” in the Mark Lane Express : —“ The way in which farms are being given up this Michaelmas shows how bad things are. I know personally of more than two or three cases in which the tenant is leaving without making any claim for compensation, simply because he is afraid to rish any expense and cannot afford to pav valuers and arbitrators where there" may be a counter-claim on the part of the landlord, and a prolonged and expensive fight. This in plain English means that the tenant is prepared to lose what money he has sunk upon his farm rather than risk anything further.”